Okay, so I'm changing the amount of time between the chapters now, since I don;t want them to be head over heels for each other too soon in their relationship. So this is about two weeks after the previous chapter, since in this chapter they are both basically all 'Oh woe is me my feelings shall be unrequited forever what a depressing life I lead oh'. Or, something like that. Plus I'm trying not to make this too fast. I want to get somewhere near the end of the first season without them becoming a couple (I just love awkward situations so) and I'm only on episode eleven. :l

Sorry if there are any mistakes. ^-^

Title: Welcome to the team

Characters/Relationships: Artemis, Wally, Spitfire, the team (kinda)

Summary: AU. Artemis joined the team before Wally. Follow the two team mates as they try their best to deny their feelings for as long as they can.

Disclaimer: I do not own Young Justice, or any of it's characters.

They had the day off again.

Artemis was getting sick of it.

She sighed, wondering if she had any homework as she curled up in her small apartment in Gotham city, hair down, still dressed in the grey tee shirt, shorts and bright green socks she wore to bed. Connor, as he was now called, and M'gann were going undercover in Belle Rev. Undercover. How come they get all the good missions? She grumbled as she changed the channel again, for one disappointed that she didn't have homework. At least it would be something to do. There was nothing good on TV, she was feeling too lazy to go to the mountain and and there was nothing to do.

She changed the channel again and wondered if she was on patrol duty. She sighed. Nope. Couldn't do that either. 'Damn, is there anything to do?' She thought, scowling at the wall. 'I'm bored out of my mind!'

She started wondering what the rest of the team were doing. She knew what M'gann and Connor were doing, obviously. Robin was probably helping Batman - the dynamic duo usually used days off to work together like they used to. She wondered why Robin was so close to the Dark Knight. Sure, she was close to Ollie, but she didn't walk around with him most places like Robin did Batman.

Kaldur was probably at the Cave. Maybe swimming.

Wally... she didn't know where Wally was. Maybe stuffing his face. Yeah, probably. For some reason, she wished she was playing video games with him like she had been doing a lot in the last couple of weeks. That had been fun. Wally was actually really good at Mariocart. They had played for almost two hours some days before, her as Yoshi, and him as Bowser (he had laughed at her reaction, saying that he didn't always choose the fast characters). She would just like to point out that she really kicked his butt at it. She would never admit, however, that what she had enjoyed most about playing video games with him was that she had been able to feel the warmth of his shoulder, as they had been sitting so close, and that she had loved watching him out of the corner of her eye and seeing him grinning and biting his lip when he was really concentrating.

'You are just his friend.' She told herself, over and over again, like she may forget it. Not that she would. It was starting to almost pain her to see him flirt with M'gann, or to see him quietly observing the Martian. She never let anyone notice, of course. No one but her and Kaldur knew, she was sre. If anyone else found out, she was pretty sure she'd die of embarrassment. She sighed, curling up and hugging her legs. She changed the channel again, since it had turned to a news report on starving children. It's not like she didn't care - quite the opposite. It was that she could do nothing to help them.

She froze as she heard a knock on the door. Who could be coming round her apartment? Her Mom was out and wouldn't be coming back until later, so it wouldn't be her. Anyway, her Mom had a key. She wouldn't knock. Maybe one of her school friends? No, it wouldn't be them. Though she had friends at Gotham North, she didn't give out her address. Who could it be then?

She sighed and stood, not bothering to tidy herself up as she shuffled sleepily towards the door. If there was one thing she couldn't care less about at that moment in time, it was her appearance. Oh, or manners. She yanked the door open and, without looking at who it was, slurred; "What do you want?"

"Artemis?" A voice came back, and her eyes widened, her head snapping upwards to see if she was correct. Wally West stared at her, obviously extremely amused by her bedraggled state. "What, get up on the wrong side of the bed this morning?"

Okay, now she cared about her appearance. She quickly tried to tame her hair by running a hand through it and casually brushed her bed shorts. "What are you doing here, Wally? And how do you know were I live?"

Wally rubbed the back of his neck and grinned sheepishly. Honestly, he didn't know why he was at her apartment either. He had asked himself what he was going to do and immediately his head had answered 'Go see Artemis, that'll be fun.' Stupidly, he had listened to his head and asked Robin if he knew where she lived. Robin had smirked at him and called him a stalker, but searched the system anyway and found her address for him. "Uh, Robin told me."

She raised an eyebrow at him, crossing her arms. 'Keep up the act, Artemis, come on.' She inwardly chanted, trying her best not to show how very aware she was of how messy she must look. "Okay, and why did Robin tell you?"

He sighed and threw up his hands for emphasis. "Look, it is so hard to believe that I want to spend my day of with a friend? Really?" He exclaimed, and he saw Artemis hesitate. 'Maybe this wasn't such a good idea...' He thought, inwardly gulping. He felt like such an idiot. Yeah, Wally, spend the day with the girl you have a crush on just so you can embarrass yourself. Great idea.

Artemis sighed, turning and walking back to the couch. "Close the door after you." She called back to him, and he did as he was told. He scanned the room briefly and Artemis frowned, expecting him to say something like 'You live in this?' or 'I'm sorry, can we go back to the Mountain instead?'.

"Nice place." He complimented, smiling and taking a seat beside her. She let out a quiet sigh of releif, and Wally didn't let her know that he heard it. He didn't know that she was insecure about stuff like that. He pulled of his jacket and Artemis made a gesture that suggested she didn't really care, so he draped it over the arm of the couch.

"So, what made you think that coming here would be entertaining at all?" She asked him, raising an eyebrow and curling up slightly. "I've been bored out of my mind for at least an hour now."

He grinned and shrugged, leaning against the back of the couch casually. 'It almost looks like he's flirti- Oh, wait, he wouldn't with me. I need to stop thinking like that.' She told herself, amused expression faltering. Wally pretended not to notice. "I thought you'd come up with something." He responded, and her smirk came back, all traces of doubt he had seen a second ago gone.

"Yeah, well, you thought wrong. You're either going to think of something to do, or leave so that I can sleep. I only got two hours last night." She told him, her tone serious but with a hint of amusement.

"Okay then... How about we go for a walk?" He suggested with a shrug, and she raised an eyebrow.

"A walk? Where did that come from?"

He shrugged, grinning and standing, grabbing his coat. "I'll take that as a yes."

She rolled her eyes fondly and stood, crossing her arms. "Pfft, you're an idiot." She laughed as she made her way to her room to get changed, and Wally smirked.

"Good to know, beautiful!" He called after her just as she closed her bedroom door. As soon as it was closed, his eyes widened and he smacked the palm of his hand against his forehead. 'Why did I call her that?' He thought, panicking slightly. It had just... slipped out. It was like it was automatic. He let out a quiet groan and pulled on his coat. It was chilly outside, and though he was never cold thanks to his super speed, he felt that he should put it on.

Meanwhile, as Artemis closed her bedroom door, her eyes widened also. Had he really called her beautiful? The last time he had called her that was in Bialya, when they had lost their memories. He must have called her it by mistake. He didn't think she was beautiful. Pfft, who would he? That's something he would say to a girl he liked. A girl that wasn't just his friend.

She rested her hands on her head and growled. 'Stop, stop, stop, stop, stop, stop!' She repeated over and over again in her head as she started to change into some flared jeans and a tee shirt - nothing fancy, since they were only going on a walk. She wondered if she should put some more effort into her appearance, since it was Wa - 'Stop it!' She shook her head furiously. 'God, you're sounding like... like... like a teenage girl!'

Wally turned his head towards to bathroom when he heard the door opening. Artemis was fixing her collar as she left the room and started to walk towards the door. Wally gaped at her back. 'I really am going to far with this whole crush thing,' He told himself, shaking his head. 'She's just Artemis - she's not even wearing anything that special.' He repeated this many times, but part of him still argued that she was beautiful, and that was why he had called her so. 'It was a slip of the tongue.' He thought firmly as Artemis stepped into some flat slip on shoes and turned to him.

"You ready?"

He grinned, walking towards the door as she opened it. "Yeah."

It really was a lovely day for a walk.

Well, Wally thought so, anyway. Artemis seemed to disagree, since as they walked, she shivered and hugged herself, scowling. "Wally, what the Hell?" She exclaimed as they reached the park. He took half a step away from her, taken aback by her outburst. "Why did you have to suggest going on a walk? I'm freezing my freaking butt off!"

He blinked at her, before smirking. This made her glare intensify. "What, you're cold? I think it's quite warm today."

"Yeah, you would..." She mumbled angrily, diverting her glare to the ground. His smirk softened and he gazed at her for a moment, unable to help himself. Her golden hair was shining, so they didn't even need the sun (it was overcast that day). It swayed slightly as she walked and the color complimented the soft green of her tee shirt.

Artemis felt his eyes boring into her and turned her head to face him, but he looked away just in time, clearing his throat. "So, what were you originally planning on doing today?" He asked, desperately trying to stop his thoughts from wandering back to her hair.

She shrugged casually, pretending nothing weird had happened. He was glad. "Not much. Watching TV, maybe go to the Mountain, if I wasn't too lazy." She answered with a smirk sent in his direction. He let out a small laugh.

"Didn't take you as the 'couch potato' type, Arty." He commented with a sly grin, nudging her with his elbow.

"I'm not a couch potato." She insisted, rolling her eyes fondly as she did so. He just laughed again, walking a bit faster.

"Yeah, right."

She walked a bit faster also and fell into step with him, scowling. "I'm not sure I like your tone."

"Oh? Sorry, but I distinctly remember walking into the cave and seeing you on the couch, in clothes that looked strangely like pajamas, talking to Kaldur, yesterday. Tell me that isn't couch potato behavior." He told her, looking straight ahead and pretending not to notice the look of sudden panic on her face.

"You didn't hear what we were saying, right?" She blurted, tugging on his shoulder so that he looked at her. He laughed again, pulling his shoulder out of her grip, even if her touch did leave a strange tingling feeling running through him.

"Maybe, maybe not." He answered casually, slipping his hands into his pockets and continuing down the gravel path leading into the center of the park.

She growled, grabbing him by the collar and pulling him forward so that their faces were inches apart. His eyes widened and he gulped, but part of him was thinking about how close their lips were. "Wallace Rudolph West, did you hear what we said?"

"Uh.. I... Uhm..."

"Did. You?"

"Nope!" He blurted, and her eyes narrowed suspiciously, like she was trying to decide if he was lying or not. After a few excruciatingly long moments, she let him go and he adjusted his collar again as she let out a sigh of relief and carried on walking like nothing had happened. He just stood, watching her retreating back with a confused expression. She was really stressed out about him hearing that she either had a crush on him or hated him - he hadn't decided yet. He didn't know she was that worried about keeping it a secret. Deciding to be a bit kinder, he rushed after her.

"Are you really that cold?" He asked her some minutes of comfortable silence later. She shrugged, but he could see the goosebumps on her arms and the way she was shivering slightly. Without warning, he took of his coat and placed it round her shoulders, since he wasn't cold in the slightest. He didn't even feel the temperature change when he took it off.

She looked up at him surprise, feeling the coat around her shoulders. After looking at it warily for a moment, as if deciding if it was going to bite her or not, she held it close to her and sent him a smile. "Thanks. A bit cliche, but thanks."

He laughed and shrugged, slipping his hands into his pockets once more. "I'm not cold, obviously, so I thought you'd need it more than I did."

He felt his insides melt slightly at how small she looked in the coat and the softness of her expression - but that softness disappeared when she suddenly looked away from him, shaking her head and looking confused. He frowned at her. "What's wrong?"

She opened her mouth to ask why he had been looking at her like that when it was M'gann he wanted, obviously, but closed it, shaking her head. She couldn't ask that. "Nothing. Its absolutely nothing." She ignored his concern for a moment and wondered why this damn crush wouldn't just leave her alone, for a day, at least. She hated herself for not disposing of the feeling sooner, before it had gone out of control.

"Well... if you're sure. But you still look like you need cheering up." He said, crossing his arms as she momentarily took of the jacket so that she could slip her arms into the sleeves and wear it normally. 'Why am I still wearing his jacket?' she asked herself furiously. 'I'm just making myself worse!' "Want to get something to eat? I'm paying." He grinned down at her and she rolled her eyes.

"Surprise, surprise," She said sarcastically, crossing her arms over her chest now that she didn't need them to hold the jacket on. "You want some food."

He held up his hands in mock defense. "Hey, it's only because you need cheering up!" His stomach grumbled. "... Okay, maybe I am a bit peckish."

She laughed, shrugging. "Okay, as long as you're paying." She scanned the area around the park, since they had walked in a circle, ending up near the entrance. "I think there's a cafe somewhere around here..."

As Wally sat on a table for two, Artemis parallel to him, eating and chatting with her, he had to keep reminding himself that it was not a date.

They were just friends.

So, as Artemis ate her muffin and laughed at the mess he looked - he had ordered about six of the things, all chocolate, and he wasn't being very tidy about stuffing himself with them (they were big muffins) - he tried his best to think completely platonic thoughts. It was hard, but he got half way through their time at the cafe without focusing on her hair and how blonde it was. 'I am such an idiot.' He told himself. 'Fall for Artemis? Yeah, great idea. She'll kill me when she finds out.'

"So, how do you think M'gann and Connor are doing on their undercover mission?" He asked casually before taking another bite of his fifth muffin, trying to change the subject of his thoughts. He didn't notice her face fall. 'C'mon, he's only mentioning M'gann. I'm becoming the person I hate, getting jealous all the time.' She thought as she shrugged, pretending not to be disappointed.

"They're probably okay. What, you're scared that Connor might steal her while they're alone?" She asked teasingly, grinning at him confidently. His eyes widened and he stuttered for a moment, not wanting her to think too much of his long gone, minor crush on M'gann. And it was long gone, even if he did still flirt with her. He didn't know why he didn't want people to know he wasn't interested anymore - it was like he was hiding something. Whatever that was, he didn't know. Don't get him wrong, there was nothing wrong with M'gann - quite the opposite. She was sweet, kind, funny. Sometimes he wondered why he wasn't interested, and if the fact that he wasn't made him insane.

"I... uh.. you..."

She laughed at him, poking him in the shoulder - they were on a small table, so all she had to do was reach out. "Don't stress over it, Kidiot. We all know you're head over heals for her. I'm sure you'll make a great couple." She said the last part sarcastically, but it felt like sandpaper in her throat. He looked disappointed for a millisecond before grinning.

'I should have know she would say something like that.' He thought, feeling like he had just been hit by a ton of bricks. Basically, crushed. 'Guess that throws any chance of this working out out of the window.' "My hotness combined with her cuteness?" He said confidently with a winning grin. "It'll be brilliant."

Something flickered in her expression, but he didn't notice, as he was putting all his interest into his muffin. She cleared her throat, catching his attention. She had finished her muffin. "I think I should go back now. My Mum will be home soon." she told him, standing and shrugging off his jacket.

"You want me to go with you?" He asked, frowning and taking the jacket from her outstretched hand. She smirked.

"I don't need a babysitter, Wallace. I'll be fine."

"Oh..." He said, putting down his muffin before smiling. "See you tomorrow, then."

She returned his smile, putting some money on the table (her share of the bill) and making her way to the door. "See ya." She pulled open the door and shut it after her with the small ring of the bell they had attached to the door frame, to alert the workers when a customer had arrived. He watched her retreating back through the window with a slight frown. That had been a sudden exit. He wondered what the rush was, but pushed that to the back of his mind, telling himself to forget any and all thoughts of his crush on the blonde for the moment.

He had a feeling that not too much would happen about it any time soon.